1. Waking up in my own bed, driving to Boston and taking off over the Atlantic ocean on a perfectly clear day was awe inspiring in and of itself.  But the airports in both Boston and San Francisco are built on water.  The fabulous juxtaposition of taking off over the Atlantic and landing over the Pacific five and a half hours later is stunning.

2. Standing on the breakwater at the end of Van Ness Avenue and having 360 degrees of amazing things to look at.  To the east is the Golden Gate Bridge.  Scanning to the right is Mt. Tamalpais and Sausalito.  Then Angel Island, Alcatraz, the east bay, and Bay Bridge.  Finally a panorama from Coit Tower across the downtown skyline to Ghirardelli Square ending at the bluffs of Fort Mason.  I literally stood on the pier and just turned myself every few minutes, not knowing what to look at.   The only thing breaking my reverie with the surroundings were the occasional couple asking me to take their picture and the sound of a jazz trumpet coming across the water.

3. The smell of chocolate emanating from Ghirardelli.  Enough said.

4. Watching the sunset from Telegraph Hill.  My favorite views of the city’s rich architecture and patchwork colors of neighborhoods.  I always try to look for the parrots, but I’ve never had any luck.  I wonder if they’re still around.

5. Hunting for (and finding) great vegetarian cuisine.  Today’s winners were a “Clark Kent vegetable sandwich” at Café Royale and seaweed tofu soup and fresh spring rolls at Loving Hut.  If only I lived in a city with real veg restaurants.